Oil Capitals stay atop MJHL power rankings

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This article was published 20/12/2023 (743 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Twelve weeks into the Manitoba Junior Hockey League season, the Virden Capitals retain the first-place power ranking.

Previously first in week 11, the first-place Oil Capitals sport an impressive 19-5-2-2 record.

The team is tarting to build some space between themselves and the rest of the west division, and have scored the third most goals in the MJHL with 107.

Heading into the new year, if the team’s fifth-ranked power-play and ninth ranked penalty kill can take a step, they’ll really be hard for any team to catch.

OCN Blizzard retain their second-place power ranking, and sport an overall 17-10-0-2 record.

Winners of four straight, all of which were road games have the Blizzard feeling confident they will not just hang around, but can overtake the top spot in the west division. They don’t care how or how long it takes, they’ll fight and claw for each point as an entire team.

The Winklers Flyers moved up two spots to third, and boast an impressive 19-3-1-2 record.

The team has points in five straight, plus games in hand mean the Flyers control their own future. And are tied for the best goal differential in the MJHL.

Adding a big-time scoring threat lengthens an already deep lineup to the point where other teams must decide where it is best to put focus, leaving others to hunt freely.

Despite an overall 15-13-1-0 record, the Neepawa Titans also moved up two spots for sit in fourth.

Proving they have the scoring to get the job done on a nightly basis, the Titans have built a moat between themselves and the number five spot in the division.

While their goal differential is eighth among current playoff teams, their 100 goals scored is second in their division and fifth among teams in playoff spots.

The Portage Terriers dropped four spots to land in fifth. With a 19-7-3-2 record, the adage holds true when good teams respond after bad outings.

For Portage, after getting served on the road, they’ve bounced back and scored 10 goals combined over two wins.

Moreover, the Terriers have played the most games in the league to this point, but their .694 winning percentage is fourth overall in the MJHL. The team is also second in goals scored with 109.

The Steinbach Pistons also dropped in the power rankings, going from third to sixth despite a 21-4-2-0 record.

Every team will face adversity and for Steinbach, the times might be tough, but they’re still grinding out points and lead the league in wins with 21 and in goals with 114.

The team also runs out the league’s second-ranked power-play and top-ranked penalty killing units.

With a 17-11-1-0 record, the Niverville Nighthawks moved up from 10th to take the seventh spot in the power rankings.

Having built a buffer between themselves and fifth place in the east division, they have earned time to find consistent ways of getting offence.

Looking to build momentum for 2024, the Nighthawks need to find the line between being physical and taking too many penalties, even though the killing units are quite good.

The Dauphin Kings dropped one spot to eighth, and have a 16-9-1-0 record at this juncture of the 2023-24 campaign.

The Kings have slowly slid down the west division standings, but still lots of games left to be played, especially considering they have games in hand on every divisional opponent.

Despite struggles, Dauphin owns the second best goal differential divisionally and needs to get positive vibes back.

Another team to drop one spot in the power rankings, the Selkirk Steelers are 10-15-1-1.

Caught in a sort of limbo, the Steelers have shown they can put up wins. But they haven’t shown they can do it for a long stretch.

They need to put things together and hope teams ahead of them hit a rough patch if they want to get back into the playoff conversation. No time to waste as every point is critical with advent of 2024 and return to action after the league’s Christmas break.

Swan Valley Stampeders cracked the top-10 just before Christmas break, moving up from 11th spot.

With a 7-21-2-0 record, the Stampeders are moving out some pieces to give other players opportunities to step up. Still lots of time for some players to carve out new roles this season and in the future.

Don’t think they’ll roll over, they’ll make teams earn points and pay a price for it.

Winnipeg Blues also moved up one spot, thanks to a victory which broke a long skid for the 6-19-3-0 team.

While the record does not show it, the Blues have the ability to be dangerous. Young players learning on the job can be tough, but also exciting.

The Blues will take some hard nights if it means learning lessons for the future. This team has a chance to steal some games and stay out of last spot in the division

The Winnipeg Freeze dropped three spots to 12th. Currently 6-19-1-0, the team is similar to their in-town rival. Some nights are going to be long, some lessons are going to hurt.

They wanted respect and they’ve gotten it. Other teams don’t take them for granted, but that means they get their opponents best consistently. Now it’s time to learn how to deal with that in the MJHL with advent of 2024.

The Waywayseecappo Wolverines dropped three spots to 13th overall in the power rankings. With a 10-17-0-2 record, there’s still good news — the Wolverines are a team that can score.

The bad news is they are giving up more than they’re getting. Hard to break the habit of searching for goals at the expense of giving up high danger chances.

Not yet out of the playoff race, but need to find a way to at least get a point out of games for a stretch.

» The Brandon Sun